Ngayon ko lang nabasa ang thread na ito (newbie eh). Pahabol ko lang sa topic kahit huling-huli na ...

Back in my college days, I remember an old radio law stating that any transmitter capable of transmitting more than 200mW (or 250mW yata) has to be regulated. Ordinary toy walkie-talkies need not be regulated because of this, also radio control (R/C) transmitters, remotes, etc. ... hence, the need for registration/regulation for higher-powered transmitters even if it is typed as a toy or remote control.

When the Private Radio Service was drafted back in the early 90's, there were no type-accepted radios yet, and units accepted for registration were mostly Ham Radio VHF units (that were supposed to be locked-out of the Ham frequencies), with a promise to upgrade to PRS radios in 5 years time yata. From the posts here it mukhang magulo pa rin hanggang ngayon.

I'm not familiar with FRS and GMRS (not interested anymore), but I would've thought these are the types ideal for the Private Radio Service. Yun nga lang, it isn't wise to assume that FCC regulations are the same as the NTC's.

Marami din kalokohan diyan sa NTC ... maraming pasado sa exams kahit alam mong bagsak, dahil katabi mo at walang sagot, pero pag nakuha yung results pasado naman ... yung mga na-confiscate na radio sila-sila ring taga-NTC gumagamit wala din silang lisensya ... may FCC-donated van (for listening/scanning) sa Manila nuon, bininyagan nila kaagad ng excursion sa Baguio - "official use" kasama ang shopping.

* oldblue - yung mod regarding crystals involve the frequency range (number of channels). It has nothing to do with distance. If you want to increase the distance (transmit AND receive), the antenna is the most important factor. Generally it's a case of "the bigger, the better", as long as it is tuned at the right frequency.